Obama Lands in Palm Springs: President Barack Obama Lands at Palm Springs International Airport on Feb. 14, 2014. He is greeted by local politicians, including Barbara Boxer (D-Rancho Mirage).

California Gov. Jerry Brown and King Abdullah II of Jordan meet in the Coachella Valley on Friday. They discussed the drought and other issues of mutual concern. / Provided by Gov. Jerry Brown's office

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Before Gov. Jerry Brown and King Abdullah II of Jordan met with President Barack Obama on Friday, the leaders met privately in the Coachella Valley to discuss shared interests in addressing the drought and developing renewable energy.

Brown, who came to the desert at the White House’s request, left immediately after the hour-long meeting and headed to Fresno.

There, Brown was among the state and federal leaders greeting Obama, who was raising awareness about the drought there before heading to a dinner at Sunnylands in Rancho Mirage with Abdullah.

“Jordan is a country very friendly to the United States, and has some of the same drought issues that California has,” Brown told The Desert Sun in a phone interview Friday afternoon.

“They’re very interested in renewable energy. We talked about Internet developments in Jordan and how important it is to the region.”

Jordan, a country of about 6.5 million people, is a developing country that is notoriously poor in water, energy and other natural resources.

While most homes have access to clean water, experts say the pipes only have water in them about once every couple of weeks.

The problem has been further exasperated by a massive influx of refugees from Syria, many of whom are living in residents’ homes instead of refugee camps.

As governor, Brown has stressed the importance of developing California’s relationships with international leaders. On Friday, he said there was an opportunity to build such a bridge with Jordan.

On Friday afternoon, however, his focus was the ongoing drought, which he declared a statewide emergency.

“We’re in a very serious drought. Maybe the most serious since California became a state,” Brown told The Desert Sun. “There are things the president can do to provide some disaster relief.”

Congress is also being asked to tackle legislation championed by California’s two senators to help provide relief.

Brown expressed confidence that Republicans and Democrats could find a common ground to tackle the issue, pointing out that “Mother Nature is not a member of either political party.”

“Increasingly, humankind and Californians are going to have to deal with changes in the natural systems — the water, the temperature, the cloud cover and the rain or lack thereof,” Brown said. “We are on a real collision course with nature. We have to make some real fundamental changes.”